Afghan Men Regret Not Supporting Women's Rights Against the Taliban

In a report published on Sunday (September 22), the Washington Post wrote that with the Taliban's adoption of the law on promoting virtue and preventing vice, not only have living conditions become extremely difficult for women, but also for men.

According to the report, the new Taliban law obliges men to grow beards and avoid imitating "non-Muslims." One Kabul resident who wished to remain anonymous said, "If men had raised their voices, we might be in a different situation now... Now everyone is growing beards because we don't want to be humiliated or insulted by the Taliban."

In this report, some residents of Kabul city have stated that Taliban’s Department of Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice has forced men to participate in congregational prayers in some areas of the city over the past month.

Government employees also fear they may be dismissed for having short beards. One such employee told the Washington Post, "We've heard that some government employees whose beards were shorter than necessary were prevented from entering their workplaces by the Taliban."

According to the report, the Taliban have also arrested taxi drivers for transporting women without a male guardian and playing music. One 36-year-old driver in Kabul said his income had decreased by 70% since the implementation of this law.

Meanwhile, a resident of eastern Afghanistan, who wished to remain anonymous, stressed that the use of force to enforce Sharia law is unacceptable.

This comes as the Taliban, after regaining power in Afghanistan, have imposed widespread restrictions on citizens, especially women and girls in the country.